The PowerPlay pad is skillfully designed, works effortlessly, and oh my god, I like never to worry about battery life.
As long as we had wireless electronics, we had the dream of wireless recharging. It's a good dream, but I do not think smart phone manufacturers or other technology companies have completely nailed it - for any device you take, you'll have to recharge it at home, need. But what if the device you charge never leaves your desk? With its new PowerPlay Wireless Mouse, Logitech not only solved the ultimate disturbance of wireless gaming mice, it created the first wireless charging solution that I simply plugged in.
It seems to me that I spend most of my life loading things. This is an important part of my daily routine, now, plug in these high-tech devices. Every night I plug my iPhone and place it on my night stand. Most nights, I connect my Android Android smartphone too (and no, I do not have a good excuse to own two phones). A laptop charger cable snakes outward from the end of my bed, and I plug it in before going to bed for the night. About once a week I recharge my Bluetooth headphones, and every week I have to cycle Eneloop AA batteries out of a game controller to give them a night in the charging bay. And also every week, I plug in my wireless mouse G900 for it to work. The price I pay for a wireless convenience is a rechargeable battery that saves life.
Logitech freed me from some of that routine. Earlier this year, I wrote that it was time for PC gamers to kiss wireless gaming mice. I've been using Logitech's G900 gaming mouse regularly for about a year, and it's not just the best gaming mouse I've ever used. It was impeccable in terms of wireless performance. This basically left two obstacles. First, the battery life. The G900 is good, but I still have to charge it every week or two. And since I built a new PC, I still did not have a cable attached to my mouse, so I finally dredged my desktop for a few hours to refresh my mouse. The second is the price: wireless mice are simply more expensive.
Now, with its PowerPlay wireless mat, Logitech has completely solved the convenience problem and has done so with truly intelligent styling and keys. Here is the basic configuration: PowerPlay is a thin loading mat with a small module at the top, which contains the wireless receiver for your mouse and a USB port to run on your PC. The cable that plugs into the pad here can also connect to your wireless mouse, whether you want a direct connection or a faster charge, even if there is not much to do. Above the loading pad, you place a regular carpet: Logitech has sent us a rigid and flexible pad to test, but these do not include any additional wiring to allow recharging. Billing is done through it.
On the top, you can place the Logitech G903 or G703 mouse, slightly modified versions of the G900 and G403. The mice have a small circular cutout at the bottom that can accommodate the magnetic load receiver or small weights. There are several small but important parts of the design that I love about this system.
- The wireless receiver is integrated in the carpet, which guarantees wireless performance essentially perfect because the distance between the mouse and the receiver is a few centimeters.
- A small light on the carpet receiver module lets you know that the mouse is charged, so there is never any doubt.
- The loading lining is thin enough to not increase the height incompatible with the general carpet. I find it is indistinguishable to use a slightly thinner normal buffer.
- The choice of soft and hard pads (or any regular carpet of the appropriate size)
- The Logitech driver software recognizes the mat and has a button that allows you to switch to a different mouse, which is ideal for switching from G903 to G703 (certainly, a feature that very few users use)
- It is easy to remove the wireless loading washer and replace it with a simple plastic filling so you can always rest on the road and use a standard wireless dongle with which the mouse is delivered
- The wireless charge is enough ... works.
The latter is particularly formidable. Your mouse gets a constant drip charge while being on the pad, keeping its battery between 85 and 95 percent. This includes the moving mouse. It is simply effortless. My mouse is always charged, and I never think of loading it.
My only boost is that I found that the hard surface of Logitech tended to slide the loading block into small steps when I moved my hand, forcing me to refocus it from time to time. I did not have a similar problem with the soft pad, and this could be easily solved with a small piece of tape or some kind of sticky material between the two pads.
Logitech has completely eliminated the last proximity obstacle for wireless mice and, at the same time, reduces the risk of wireless interference by bringing the recipient directly into the carpet. At the same time, this convenience comes at the expense of aggravating the price barrier. Logitech G903 LIGHTSPEED Gaming Mouse with POWERPLAY Wireless Charging Compatibility
(and comes with a soft and hard pad), but you will still have to buy the mouse separately. It's not cheap, but it works very well.Logitech has set up a high bar for the other wireless charging blocks, and I do not doubt. The Corsair Charger uses the industry standard Qi prices, which also allows you to charge a smartphone or other device with a dongle. This could be a great benefit, although it all depends on how the implementation of the software and hardware is so easy to see if that excludes the Logitech connection. I think the ability to choose your mousepad is an important point in favor of PowerPlay.
If price is always your primary concern for purchasing a wireless mouse, PowerPlay will not change your mind. But if the convenience of never having to plug your mouse still turns, I can tell you it's just as good as you'd dream.
